Historic Hood River
True Crime
Notes
This odd portrait had me scratching my head, but there’s quite a story behind it. Meet T. J. Miller, who according to the note on the back “was shot Wednesday by Luther Fagan, ex-convict.” The shooting of Mr. Miller, followed by a triple kidnapping and the subsequent death of the shooter at the hands of a posse was big news, making it as far as the New York Times. Here’s the Oregonian’s account of this sensational crime of 1921. After shooting Mr. Miller, Mr. Fagan kidnapped Mr. Miller’s wife, daughter, and another boy, holding them until he was shot by a rancher while holding a gun to a hostage. Make sure you read through the break to page 6, where you’ll hear Mr. Miller explain how he told Fagan he was a coward who wouldn’t dare shoot him. He was mistaken.
Charlott
Quite the story to say the least.
T.J. was Thomas Jefferson Miller, who came from Miller, in Sherman County. His father was T.J.Miller Sr. and there are quite the stories about him also.
T.J.’s wife’s name was Mary Ann.
A good account of Dr. Thrane about all of this.
Look at the construction of that chair. All handmade.
charlott
I know this is about T.J. the son, but if any of you wish to read a wonderful account of his father and his life, go to Findagrave and use # 54520775. Most interesting to anyone interested in Oregon history.
Buzz
Am I the only one having trouble reading the Oregonian account. By the time I blow it up big enough to read it is too fuzzy. I have used some of my more colorful language and hit this laptop with my biggest hammer but no success. So my only comment is that Mr. Wilson’s eyes did not remind me of someone being considered for sainthood.
Buzz
Mr. Miller’s eyes. This computer has got me hot. I’m going to do something intelligent and cool off by beating on golfballs in the rain.
Carly
How funny – I just shared some of the research team’s findings on the Miller/Fagan story on the Museum’s Facebook page. Luther Fagan is being portrayed at this year’s Cemetery Tales performance, and the team has been hard at work unraveling this story. There are still some gaps though, so if you have any info on Luther Fagan or the TJ Miller family, please let us know!
Jill
Good golly! That is a great story – I read it all the way through, and I winder if Miss Miller was forever damaged by the man holding a gun to her being shot through the head and pulling her backwards as he fell . . seems to me SHE should be the one at Cottage hospital. I am assuming this is where the picture was taken as T.J. Miller. He is sitting in a chair from the Old Hickory Furniture Company of Shelbyville,Indiana. I collect them! Thank you for an exciting account of a dastardly deed!
Buzz
Jill, I believe you about where the chair was made, and think it is neat that you have that much knowledge of that particular company. Do you have similar chairs from that era? And where do you find them?
Jill
Hello Buzz – the chair company has a web site http://www.oldhickory.com/history.phtml that tells more about them. The Ted Pooleys had a complete set of them on the brick patio on the side of their house. Those were the first ones I ever saw and that was quite a while ago. It was considered ‘fashionable" to have the "rustic look". I often wonder if they are still there. Yes, I have chairs just like the one in the picture. The hickory canework seats nearly always have to be replaced because of the wear and tear.
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cg
Being one of the research team working on the story about Luther Fagan I was happy to see the picture of TJ Miller but also interested in comments about the old hickory furniture. Jill, do you know if backs and seat were always woven? I have two chairs and a loveseat that looks very similar but has slats in those areas.
Jill
cg – the original Old Hickory Furniture always had woven seats and backs. You can discover if you have a piece of Old Hickory by looking for a brand, branded right into the wood – usually on a bottom support somewhere – it is an elongated diamond shape with the words Old Hickory Furniture Co. inside. Other companies started making similar furniture but they used slats instead of weaving, I think to avoid a confrontation. I hope this helps?
Roger Blashfield
Where I can find the stories about Tom Miller Senior? TJ Miller was described as a rancher. Does anyone know where he lived, what livestock he had, and if there are any living relatives of the Millers that lived in this part of Oregon?
Roger